Crossed Lines
by veespirit
Summary: Some things are too damaged to repair, but this wasn't one of them. BtVS/SPN - Faith/Sam.
1. Running Away

If there was one thing that Faith was really good at, it was her ability to fool others into thinking she was fine. All it took was a flip comment or a strong right hook. Either worked, and she didn't care which she had to use.

She didn't do the commitment thing. She didn't owe anyone anything, and she had learned long ago that people let you down. She was on her side, and that was enough. So while it was fun while it lasted, she didn't need him. She didn't need anyone.

Which is why when they had _that_ argument, she walked away. She threw her clothes and weapons into her duffel, ignoring his comments, his need to finish the argument, and she got the hell out of that room. Slammed the door so hard it broke off its hinges, and left him staring after her, and wondering if he would ever see her again. Wondering how she could just walk away after six months, when he wanted to fight for it. Thought it was something worth fighting for. Wanting her to turn around and come back and fight with him again.

She didn't turn back. She never did.

So when Faith turned up on Angel's doorstep, he didn't question the bleeding grazes on her knuckles or the dark circles under her eyes. He simply opened the door wider, pointed in the direction of the spare room and left bandages and antiseptic cream sitting on the sink in the bathroom.

She would talk when she was ready. If she was ever ready.


	2. See It Through

If there was one thing that Sam was really good at, it was brooding for so long that Dean felt like smacking him over the back of the head, just to get a reaction. He didn't usually get one, and there was to be no exception this time.

Sam did the commitment thing. He didn't really understand why you wouldn't, especially if you cared about someone. He admitted that with his lifestyle it was slightly impossible these days, but that's why when he'd met _her_...

Which is why when they'd had _that_ argument, the one that had ended only because she had left, not because anything had been resolved, he'd stared after her. Tried to make her stay, even while she was packing her things, but evidently, she had a lot of practice in ignoring people, because she didn't say a word. Just threw her things into her bag and left. Left him with a broken door and an even more broken heart, staring after her and hoping that she would turn around. Fight to save whatever it was they had shared. Because he thought it was worth saving.

She may have walked away, but he wasn't going to let her go. He was going to chase after her.

So when Sam closed the lid of his laptop and looked up at Dean with red rimmed eyes, Dean couldn't bring himself to tease his younger brother. He simply nodded, packed his own bag and headed out to the impala and waited for Sam to give an indication of where they were headed.

City of Angels. Sam was going to see this thing through, like he always had.


	3. Avoidance

"How long do you think you can continue on this way?" Angel asked, leaning against the doorframe of the bathroom, watching the brunette Slayer bandage herself up.

Faith ignored him, like she did most nights, running the cloth under the water. She squeezed the excess out, then lifted it to her face, dabbing carefully at the cut underneath her left eye. A dark, ugly bruise was already forming on her chin, and her knuckles were brazed and bleeding.

"Sam still exists, Faith," the vampire said quietly.

For the first time in days, there was a reaction from Faith. She paused in her actions, tilting her head slightly.

"He is still out there," he continued on, watching her expression carefully, gauging her reactions. "This doesn't change the fact that you walked out on him. It doesn't change whatever happened between you two."

She clenched her jaw, running her hand under the tap, washing the blood away from her knuckles. The water swirled down the drain, and she focused on it, purposely trying to block Angel's voice out.

"It's hard," he told her. "Walking away from someone you care about is hard. Walking away from a chance of happiness is - "

All of a sudden, she was in his face, pushing him back against the door and holding him there with her arm across his chest.

"You don't know anything about it," she snapped. "I didn't come here to talk about it."

Angel lifted his hand, and pushed her arm down gently. "Yes. You did."

Faith dropped her arm, taking a step back. She shook her head, and turned back to the sink, refocusing her attention on her knuckles again.

"Faith."

"Please," she said softly, letting her hair fall in front of her face, shielding her eyes from Angel. "Please just leave it."


	4. It's Time

They had been sitting in the car outside the building for at least three hours now. Not that Dean was counting or anything. He ducked his head slightly, trying to see the very top of the tall building, and he whistled for a second, before tapping on the steering wheel impatiently.

"You going?" he asked, glancing across at his brother.

Sam didn't answer, his own eyes on the entrance of the building, hoping against hope he would see Faith come out the door. He clenched his fists for a moment, debating whether or not to just walk in and demand to see her.

"Sam? Sammy?" Dean waved his hand in front of Sam's face. "Are you going in or not?"

This time when he received no response, he couldn't stop himself from rolling his eyes. Ever since Faith had left, Sam had been behaving like a zombie. Only talking when he absolutely had to, eating because Dean made him, and he was fairly sure that his younger brother wasn't sleeping too much.

"For the love of – SAM!" He clicked his fingers loudly to get Sam's attention. "You came here to get her back, right? So man up, and go do that. Otherwise, I swear, I'll turn this car around and we won't ever be coming back."

After a long moment, Sam finally opened the door, sliding out of the car reluctantly. He looked up at the building and sighed, almost inaudibly, before closing the door behind him. He took a slow step forward, shaking his head slightly.

"About time," Dean muttered. "Good luck, bro."


	5. Too Hard

"It just got too hard."

A long silence followed that statement, and Faith stood at the window, watching the sun sink down below the horizon, ending another day that had felt entirely too long. She breathed a sigh of relief. The night was easier; it always had been for her. She always felt like she could breathe easier at night. She could hide in the shadows, safe under the covers. She could close her eyes and pretend that things were different. Sleep, perchance to dream, an eight hour break from the mess her life had become.

Angel waited patiently for her to continue. He had learned long ago that you couldn't push Faith into talking. She would say exactly what she wanted, when she wanted, and sometimes, he had found out, you had to listen to the things she _didn't_ say.

"I just couldn't do it," she added.

She stopped for a moment, floundering for the right words to explain the last fight they'd had. She opened her mouth and then closed it again, a second later.

"He asked for too much." It was more of a statement than a question, but Angel watched carefully, to see how she reacted.

Faith nodded, her eyes never leaving the view from the window. "I think so."

~*~

_He pressed his hand against hers, eyes crinkling up into a smile as he compared the difference in size. He bent slightly, laying a kiss on her upturned palm, marvelling inwardly at the strength that her hands contained._

"_I'm starting to think you have a hand fetish," she teased, tapping him on the chin playfully._

"_More like a Faith fetish," he teased back, pulling her down onto his lap. He rested his chin on her shoulder._

"_You should see someone about that," she grinned, tilting her head slightly._

"_That would imply I want it to go away," he countered, turning to kiss her on the cheek. "And that's simply not the case."_

_She didn't answer, rather turned herself around, straddling his lap. She pushed him back against the mattress, before leaning down and kissing him, one hand already reaching down to undo his pants._

~*~

Faith pressed her palm against the cool glass of the window, feeling a slight tingle in the centre of her hand, where Sam had kissed her, so long ago.


	6. Face to Face

Sam stood in front of the elevator, watching the doors close. He had been standing in the same position for about half an hour, not yet having worked up the courage to just get on and face whatever it was that would meet him upstairs. He clenched his fist, unclenching it a second later and bringing it up to his eye line.

~*~

_She let out a pained breath as his fingers ran over her swollen knuckles. He raised her hand to his mouth and kissed her injured hand softly._

"_Better?" he smiled._

"_Oh, definitely," she replied, turning her hand to touch the side of his cheek._

_He nuzzled into her hand, turning his head slightly to kiss her open palm, while his free hand pulled her closer._

_She rested her forehead against his for a moment, and they locked eyes for a minute._

"_I love you," he breathed._

_She leaned in and kissed him, slipping her hands under his shirt._

~*~

The 'ping' from the doors of the elevator pulled Sam from his daydream, and he lifted his head, ready to actually get on this time.

The doors opened, and for a long moment, Faith and Sam stared at each other.


	7. Stop Leaving Me

The deer caught in headlights look on Sam's face would've been hilarious, had Faith not been sure that she was wearing a fairly similar expression. And if he had been anyone else, anyone other than _Sam Winchester_, then she could've laughed and walked away. She easily could've walked away without looking back. Which is what she had intended to do in the first place, but evidently, the guy was under her skin.

"Sam."

"Faith."

They continued to stare at each other for a few more seconds, before the elevator doors started to close. And just as Faith was about to breathe a sigh of relief for an easy escape, Sam slipped into the confined space with her. And pressed the button for the top floor.

The lift started its slow ascent, and the pair stood there in silence, listening to the muzak that was playing faintly through the speakers.

"Business trip?" Faith asked, the clipped, defensive tone creeping into her voice, almost out of habit.

"You could say that," Sam returned, his own tone mirroring hers.

"Well," she drawled, before jabbing at the button for any floor, hoping that she could end this awkward little pow-wow sooner than he had obviously intended. "I'll leave you to it."

Sam immediately pressed the stop button, and the lift jolted to a halt.

"No," he insisted. "Stop leaving. Just... stay. Finish this argument with me. Then you can leave. So, yell at me. Hit me. Just finish it."

"I thought I did when I left," she replied, shrugging. "I don't do long-drawn out goodbyes, Sam. Thought you knew that."

"Yeah, well I don't think this is a goodbye. It wasn't then, and it isn't now," Sam told her. "You don't want this to be over. I know you, Faith. I know you better than you think I do."

"You're wrong." Faith crossed her arms over her chest, taking a small step away and ending with her back against the wall. "It is over. I wanted it to be over. I walked away from you, remember? You might not want this to be over, but it is. So deal with it."

Sam let out a bitter chuckle. "No. I'm right. And I don't know why you won't admit... why you _can't_ admit it. But you need me, just as much as I need you."

~*~

"_Face it, Lehane, you can't resist me."_

_He was smiling in that annoyingly smug – yet incredibly charming – way that he did, and it was almost impossible to argue with him. Almost._

"_You're full of it, Winchester," she said, rolling her eyes for effect. "I'm immune to you and your so-called 'charm'."_

_Sam put his hand over his heart, and fell back against the bed._

"_Oh, you got me. Right here. No chance of survival. I'm a goner."  
_

"_Well," she sighed. "Guess I should make your last moments memorable then."_

_He grinned again, and pulled her down on top of him._

"_It's your civic duty," he told her._

"_And you know me," she replied. "I'm all about the good deeds."_

_Sam chuckled._

"_God, I love you."_

_Faith faltered for a second, before ignoring his comment and leaning in to kiss him._

_~*~_


	8. Where It Began

"Wrong again," Faith snapped, shaking her head. "I don't need you. I don't need anyone."

"Then why did you go running to the one place you knew I could find you?" Sam didn't miss a beat. "You could've gone anywhere, disappeared without a trace. But you came here. To him. And you knew that I could come find you at anytime."

"You're reaching," she replied. "Did it occur to you that I didn't think of you at all? That I came here because this is where I had been before you appeared and messed up my life."

Sam shook his head slowly, his eyes pleading with her to open up, to say something, _anything_ that would give him reason to think that he had a fighting chance here. Something that would show him that she was still his girl. Because he wasn't ready to give that up.

"You don't mean that."

~*~

_Sam rounded the corner then stopped so suddenly that Dean ran right into the back of him. His eyes focused on the scene in front of him, and he stopped himself from letting his jaw drop in shock._

"_Well," Dean said, looking around his younger brother. "Guess she has it under control."_

_The girl moved fluidly, her motions graceful, almost as if she were dancing, rather than fighting a vampire. Her long wavy brown hair flew out behind her, and the knife she held glinted each time it hit the light. She brought her arm up, slicing easily through the neck of the creature, and she stepped back as it exploded into dust._

"_Dean?" Sam didn't take his eyes off the girl. "What the hell - "_

_The girl looked up, acknowledging her audience for the first time. She took in their looks of shock and confusion and then rolled her eyes._

"_High on PCP," she told them, shrugging. "Kids today, huh?"_

_And with that terrible excuse, she turned, tossing her hair over her shoulder and heading in the opposite direction._

"_Wait!" Sam called, startling even himself._

_She stopped, but didn't turn._

"_That was a vampire, right?" he managed. "We've... we've seen vampires before, but nothing like – "_

"_Sammy!" Dean punched his arm._

_The girl turned around, her eyes roaming across the boys in a way that made Sam blush faintly._

"_Vampires, hey?" she drawled. "Guess it's your lucky night."_

"_How do you figure?" Dean asked._

_The girl grinned. "You get to buy me dinner."_

~*~


	9. Can't Give Up

She stood at the window, her back to him, eyes glued to the streets below them, while Sam leaned against the table, arms folded across his chest. He watched her carefully, waiting. Just waiting.

"Ten minutes," she told him. "I gave you ten minutes."

Sam nodded, though she couldn't see him. He cleared his throat and ran a hand through his hair nervously.

"I don't want this to be over," he said simply. "I don't want _us_ to be over."

Faith didn't answer; she just kept staring out the window, focused intently on something Sam couldn't see.

"I'm in this," he added. "And the thing is... I think you're in it too. You just won't admit it."

~*~

"_Whoa, hold up." Dean held his hands up. "First you're telling me that fangs are nowhere near extinct, but also that you were chosen to fight them? And now there are hundreds of girls like you? Sorry, sweetheart, but that sounds like a load of bull."_

"_Well, honey," Faith replied, her tone faintly mocking. "Afraid that's the ugly truth. Suppose the story has changed a little these days, but it was one girl born in all the world with the strength and skill to kill the vampires. She alone will stop the spread of their evil blah blah blah. Never did pay much attention to the finer details. Only needed to know that I kick ass and I'm pretty awesome at it too."_

"_But now there are more?" Sam asked, his expression less sceptical than his brother's._

"_Yeah," she nodded. "Had a bit of an issue with a Hellmouth in Sunnydale, and Willow cast this spell to activate – "_

"_Hellmouth?" The Winchester's said in unison._

_Faith's mouth quirked into an amused grin. "That was wicked cute. You boys do anything else together?"_

_Dean got it straight away, his face wrinkling up in disgust, while Sam stared at her blankly for a few moments, before his face mirrored Dean's._

"_No," Dean said sternly. "I'm not great at sharing."_

"_Who says I'm interested in you, babe?" Faith's eyes flicked over to Sam again, and he blushed furiously._

~*~

"I know it scares you," Sam said quietly. "Even though you won't admit it. And it's ok, Faith, it is. It's natural to be scared and I understand why you would - "

"Don't do that," Faith cut in. "Don't pretend you understand me. You won't ever. So stop trying."

His eyes slid to the floor, hands in his pockets and shoulders hunched.

"I can't," he admitted, almost in a whisper. "I can't give up here."

"You have to," she replied, voice cracking. "I'm not... you just have to."

~*~


	10. Why

"_It really is effortless for you, isn't it?" Sam asked, keeping stride with her._

_Faith shrugged. "Yes and no. It can get a little hairy sometimes, but usually? Yeah, sure, no problem. Though that comes with the Slayer gig. Impressed?"_

"_Guilty," he chuckled. "I mean, Dean and I were brought up like soldiers, but even then, I doubt either of us could take you on and win."_

"_I don't know," she replied slyly. "I think if you both took me on, we'd all win."_

_Sam's face screwed up in disgust. "Gross, that's my brother."_

"_Thus the fun," Faith winked._

"_Seriously?" he asked, after a short moment of silence._

_Her laugh was the only answer he received._

~*~

The air felt thick between them, or at least that's how it felt to Sam. It was like there was this invisible barrier between them, and try as he might, he couldn't quite seem to break through it to reach her. And that was all he wanted. So badly, all he wanted was to take her in his arms again, even if it was for the last time.

"Why do you even care?" Faith broke the silence, still facing the window.

Sam looked up, almost hopefully, before answering. "About you?"

She shrugged. "Yeah. About me. About this."

"Isn't it obvious?" he asked, with a wry smile.

Faith closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. She turned around, facing Sam for the first time since they'd come up to the room.

"I love you," he breathed, raising his eyes to meet hers.


	11. I'm Sorry

"_Wouldn't have picked you for her type," a voice came from behind him._

_Sam turned slightly, his eyes flicking over the petite blonde he'd met hours earlier. "So I've been told."_

"_Nothing against you," she continued, sitting down beside him. "Just a casual observation."_

"_Duly noted," he replied, shrugging. "But, no offence, you don't know me -"_

"_But I know Faith," she countered. "Like I said, just an observation."_

_Sam opened his mouth to reply, then closed it, not really knowing where to go from there._

"_Guess you noticed the tension?" she guessed, smiling faintly._

"_Hard to miss," he answered._

"_Yeah, well, all normal in the world of Buffy and Faith," she shrugged. "Probably won't ever change."_

"_And you're ok with that?" Sam questioned, raising an eyebrow._

_Buffy let out a bitter laugh. "You don't know Faith the way I do."_

"_Maybe not," he said, tilting his head slightly. "But you don't know her the way I do. So you shouldn't be so quick to judge."_

"_And neither should you," she said haughtily. "Trust me, you wouldn't like the Faith I know."_

_With that, the blonde Slayer got up from beside him and walked away._

~*~

Unconsciously, Faith took a step back, her arms folding over her chest protectively. She had an unreadable expression on her face.

"I love you," Sam repeated, keeping his eyes on hers.

She looked away, and almost seemed to shrink on the spot.

"You think I don't notice that, but I do," he continued.

"Notice what?" she asked.

"That you run, whenever things get too real," he told her. "I say I love you and you freeze up. You pull away, or you just pretend I never said it. But I did say it, Faith. I said it and I meant it. And I'll keep saying and meaning it. But please... stop running. Because it's not going to change how I feel. Or how you feel back."

Faith looked at him, dark eyes red rimmed and burning with tears she would never shed. She hesitated, and then shook her head, unsure of how to answer him.

"I'm sorry," he went on. "I'm really sorry. For everything I said that day, for not stopping you from leaving, for taking so long to get here. I'm sorry for all of that. But I'm not sorry for being in love with you."

~*~

_Dean nudged Sam as he rejoined the group. He leaned over to fill his brother in on what he'd missed. "It's weird, dude. She hasn't said anything. But it's getting pretty tense."_

_Sam looked over at Faith, his face softening at the sight of her. "Yeah, I can imagine."_

"_She's a killer, Angel," Buffy said coolly, giving Faith a quick sideways glance. "She's taken a life. A human life."_

"_She needs help," Angel answered. "You have a responsibility here. You're the ones who did this to her, after all."_

"_Then we take her out," the blonde insisted. "The last thing we need is another rogue on our hands. Vi and her team can take care of it, they're in the area. It's settled."_

"_I didn't think we were in the business of giving up on people," Angel argued. "If you just give me a few weeks -"_

"_No," she replied firmly._

"_Buffy!" he protested. "A few weeks, that's all I'm asking. We're talking about saving a life. Saving a soul."_

"_No," she repeated, taking another glance at Faith. "Some people aren't worth saving."_

_Faith sighed, refusing to take the bait. "And on that thinly veiled dig, I'm out of here."_

"_Yeah, come here, dump this mess on us and then leave us to clean it up," Buffy told her. "Always the same story with you, isn't it?"_

"_I didn't come here to fight with you," the brunette said, her voice tired. "I came across the information, thought you might know how to deal with it. But I guess I was wrong."_

"_I will deal with it," Buffy said icily._

"_By killing her?" Faith raised an eyebrow. "Well, should've guessed. You're wicked good at giving up on people."_

"_Don't you dare." The blonde's voice cut through the air like a knife. "Don't you dare make me out to be the bad guy here, because I tried. I tried so hard to help you and you spat on me."_

"_Interesting that trying looked so much like giving up." Faith's tone matched Buffy's. "Look, I really didn't come here to fight, but I'm not going to be your punching bag either. I get it, you don't like me, and you don't believe I've changed, but don't punish this girl because of how you feel about me. Let Angel do this thing, give this girl a chance. A few weeks, and if nothing comes of it, go to town, B. We all know how you love saying 'I told you so'."_

"_She's right, Buffy," Angel cut in gently. "Don't let your history with Faith cloud your judgement. A few weeks, I think I might have a shot of getting through to her."_

"_Figures you'd both agree," Buffy scorned. "I forgot for a moment that I'm not a part of your club. I've never killed anyone."_

_Faith's eyes narrowed, but she just shook her head and then stalked angrily from the room._

_Sam glanced at Dean before going after Faith._

~*~


	12. You Knew?

"You were looking for an out, long before we had that fight," Sam stated simply, catching her gaze and holding it. "In hindsight, I guess I saw it coming."

Faith turned away again, facing the window. She pressed her palm against the glass, grateful her hair had fallen in front of her face. She exhaled deeply, unsure of how to answer him. There wasn't much to say. He was right, he usually was. She had been looking for an out, ever since the Buffy incident.

"Did you think I didn't already know?" he asked softly.

She turned sharply, brown eyes flashing. "You knew?"

"I knew," he replied. "Come on, Faith, you dropped enough hints, and you didn't honestly think Dean wouldn't make me do a background check, right?"

She smiled slightly at that. "I guess."

"I didn't walk away when I found out, and I'm not walking away now." Sam took a step towards her. "So why are you always leaving me?"

_Dean let out a whistle as he slid into the booth across from Faith. _

"_Good thing Sammy isn't here," he grinned, indicating her cleavage. "Now I can enjoy my dinner with the ladies in peace. Without the guilt trip."_

_The Slayer quirked an eyebrow. "The ladies?"_

"_Hell yeah," he replied, the shit-eating grin still on his face. "My favourite ladies."_

_Faith rolled her eyes. "You know he's going to be here soon, right?"_

"_Until then," Dean wiggled his eyebrows. "You wanna bend over a little more?"_

_She smiled sweetly, holding the menu up to cover her chest. "Not really."_

"_Before you hooked up with Sam, you were more fun."_

"_You've mentioned that, once or twice."_

_They sat in companionable silence for a few seconds, before Dean spoke again. "If you hurt him, I will kill you, though."_

_Faith looked up and met his eyes. She nodded. "I'd never do it on purpose, if that helps."_


End file.
